Games Inbox: Fez, GAME+ and Metroid Prime 1

Today’s morning Inbox sings the praises of Fez and asks: Do you play games in the right manner or simply go into autopilot? To add your own comments email us at
gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk.

Fez: An absolute treat this game

Fez loveI just wanted to express my surprise that nobody else has wrote in to mention how great Fez is.

What an absolute treat this game has turned out to be, although really I use the word treat lightly because some of the puzzles are causing my brain to hurt so much I may as well just call it a brain aneurysm right now. So yeah, in conclusion, more people need to buy this as it’s probably game of the year for me so far, but I am still yet to play Trials Evolution today…Jonny5

Giving up the gamere: DMR and Fassin Taak. Yes, I found the asteroid shoot in the original Dead Space a big difficulty spike, and couldn’t believe it had made its way into the final release in that state. It was totally at odds with the rest of the game and took numerous attempts

As for the final boss in Metroid Prime 1, yes, it was a real stinker even compared to Meta Ridley, and I gave up after a handful of lengthy attempts. But possibly the main reason I gave up is that, when you die, you return to your last save point and have to again fight through the cavern to reach the boss, rather than replaying right from the start of the boss fight. Life’s simply too short for this kind of nonsense!Jon Edwards

I was reading the what would you like to say at the bottom of the letters page, it has become part of my daily GC read, and there was a comment from bobwallet who had kindly offered his Dark Souls to any GC reader who contacted him, he was saying who the winner was, and saying he enclosed a list of everyone who had contacted him to win the game, and when the reader was finished with it he may wish to pass it on to someone from the list. I just wanted to say I think it’s the most wonderful form of kindeness, which is just going to go on and on. bobwallet i salute you, you are a true gent, and another reason why the GC community is such a great place to be.two macks (gamer tag)

GAME+

So I’m on an Easter break and did my usual thing of going round GAME, to see what was on offer, hmv to see what they had in the world cinema/anime section, then Waterstones for a look at the Batmans/graphic novels they had in, as I sat in a fast food chain afterwards it struck me what if our ‘new GAME+’ combined all these things under one roof, I mean you can pick up the animes for £5 in HMV and the Batmans for £10-15 so they can’t be that expensive for a retailer to buy, flagship stores could even stock your limited edition Transformer figures and what about game soundtrack CDs there must be a market for those judging by inbox letters.I’m dreaming aren’t I!Montgomery burns

Favourite console

GC I’d like to suggest a Hot Topic posing the question – what is your favourite console of all time and why? Was it the aesthetics, features or just the games? A console is defined by its games, so name your favourite titles. Do the features of the modern console interest you at all, or would you prefer a gaming only system instead? Do you have any regrets over consoles you have either bought or chosen not to?

My favourite console ever is the N64. Far from being Nintendo’s most successful venture, the moment I booted up Shadows of the Empire I was sold. From the robust look of the console itself, the almost instantaneous loading games cartridges and intriguing controller, it was the most exciting console I ever owned. Classics such as Super Mario 64 and the peerless GoldenEye cemented its place as my favourite ever console.

Other worthy mentions for different reasons include Xbox 360, representing a new era in gaming, but any excitement was diminished by the loudness of that fan, which was so off-putting. PlayStation 3 felt like I’d bought a high tech piece of equipment, but it felt more like buying a new television than a games console.

Most disappointing console – PlayStation 2, I’m still waiting for those ‘ toy story graphics’ and entering the Matrix. Crazy Ken, how we miss him! The most successful console and I didn’t like it a great deal. Biggest regret, not buying a Dreamcast or GameCube. Missed out on some stellar games there!Up4Banter

Playing it the right way

Do I take the left path or the right path? What if the other path has a hidden, unique, missable treasure? What if the path I choose has a point of no return? – usually enforced by cutscene or boss battle. It’s a conundrum i’ve faced many times, I often venture half way down one route, panic and then quickly turn back and try the other, it’s a nightmare for the completionist in me.

I often have slight worries and quirks when playing games, for example, in the God of War games I’m constantly referring to the combo screen in case there is a move I’m not using enough or have simply forgotten about. Playing Morrowind (my first open world game) saw me hoarding beyond belief – “This random spoon has to have some use at some point!” and in Resident Evil games I obsess about saving ammo and healing items so much that I die avoidable deaths because of it!

I think it’s because, in the past, the majority of games were fully completed simply by reaching the end. But as games have become more open in terms of gameplay and/or worlds, the goal for me now is rarely reaching the credits but rather about doing it right. So ask yourself – Did you finish the game? Or did you complete it? Did you play it right or simply go into autopilot? Petch1984

This week’s Hot Topic

The subject for this week’s Hot Topic was suggested by reader JayT71 (gamertag), who asks what favourite games you have discovered only because of a recommendation on Metro GameCentral.

Whether it was a review or a reader’s letter or feature, what games would you never have known about if not for reading GameCentral? Did your enjoyment of the game lead you to discover other similar titles that you never thought you’d like? Or gain a more general willingness to take a risk on unfamiliar games?

What games have you tried because of GameCentral recommendations and not liked, and are you still glad you tried them? What reviews do you think GameCentral has got completely wrong and what games can you just not understand other people being so enthusiastic about?